Absolute Beginners (David Bowie song)

"Absolute Beginners (song)" redirects here. For the Jam song, see Absolute Beginners (The Jam song).

"Absolute Beginners"
Single by David Bowie
from the album Absolute Beginners: The Original Motion Picture Soundtrack
B-side"Absolute Beginners" (dub mix)
Released3 March 1986 (1986-03-03)
RecordedJune 1985,[1] August 1985[2]
Studio
  • Westside Studio, London[1]
  • Westside (Shepherds Bush, London)[2]
Length
  • 8:03 (full-length album version)
  • 5:36 (single version)
LabelVirgin
Songwriter(s)David Bowie
Producer(s)
David Bowie singles chronology
"Dancing in the Street"
(1985) 		"Absolute Beginners"
(1986) 		"Underground"
(1986)
Music video
"Absolute Beginners", "David Bowie Impersonates..." Mark Saunders, January 22, 2016. on YouTube

"Absolute Beginners" is a song written and performed by English singer-songwriter David Bowie. Recorded in August of 1985, and released on 3 March 1986, it was the theme song to the 1986 film of the same name (itself an adaptation of the book Absolute Beginners). Although the film was not a commercial success, the song was a big hit, reaching No. 2 on the UK singles chart. It also reached the top 10 on the main singles charts in ten other countries. In the US, it peaked at No. 53 on the Billboard Hot 100.

Bowie performed "Absolute Beginners" live on his 1987 Glass Spider Tour, his 2000 "Mini" Tour, and his 2002 Heathen Tour. The song has been included on a number of Bowie's compilation and "Best-of" releases, and was included as a bonus track on the 1995 re-release of Tonight (1984).

  1. ^ a b Thompson, Dave (2006). Hallo Spaceboy: The Rebirth of David Bowie. ECW Press. p. 321. ISBN 978-1-55022-733-8.
  2. ^ a b Shepherd, Jack (21 January 2016). "David Bowie impersonates Bruce Springsteen, Neil Young, Iggy Pop and Lou Reed in newly unearthed recording". The Independent. Archived from the original on 28 June 2016. Retrieved 8 June 2016.